


sweet impact

by orphan_account



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Halloween Costumes, Momtara and Dadko, Spooky Zutara Challenge, This is not even remotely spooky, Trick or Treating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:14:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27183673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Zuko and Katara are getting the kids ready for trick-or-treating, but there's a hitch.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 85
Collections: Spooky Zutara Challenge





	sweet impact

**Author's Note:**

> for the Spooky Zutara Challenge! it's not spooky, but it _is_ fluffy.

“I’m going to go check in on Kya while you finish getting Izumi dressed, do you need me?” Zuko asked Katara, who was in the middle of wrangling a very fussy seven month old into a onesie. Katara looked over to the crib, where Izumi’s twin brother lay, peacefully napping, and nodded. 

“I think I got it, go ahead,” she said, gesturing towards the door. 

He made his way to his eldest daughter’s bedroom, pausing at the open doorway to give a knock. 

“Hey kiddo, how’s everything he— Kya?” He froze at the sight of his six year old daughter holding her Halloween costume on the floor, silent tears streaming down her face. 

He immediately went over and crouched down next to her, taking her into his arms. 

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” he asked her softly. 

Kya looked up at him and broke into hiccuping sobs, the sudden attention seeming to open the floodgates. 

“Papa, I—  _ hic—  _ I broke my costume,” she cried.

“It’s okay, shh, don’t worry,” he held her close and rubbed her back in soothing circles, trying to calm her down. “It’s okay, we’ll fix it. What happened?” 

“I was trying to put it on a-and it was too hard and then it  _ ripped _ and I broke it and it’s all my fault!” she wailed, tiny fists clutching his shirt tightly. He pulled her away slightly to look at her face. 

“It’s okay, we’ll do what we can. But honey, why didn’t you ask me or Mama for help?” 

Kya was the spitting image of Katara, right down to her blue eyes and button nose. They often joked that Katara had just cloned herself, but at that moment, Zuko saw his own self reflected in his daughter’s expression— the scared young boy constantly seeking his father’s approval. 

“I didn’t wanna bother you and Mama while you were helping ‘Zumi and Eiji. I tried to be responsible like you always say. Papa, please don’t be mad at me,” she said in a whisper.

A realization hit him like a ton of bricks. Katara’s second pregnancy had been difficult on all of them, it was high risk since she was carrying multiples. Complications during delivery led to a stint in the NICU for the twins that had left the entire family drained. He and Katara tried their best to give Kya an equal amount of one-on-one attention, but many of their family talks revolved around Kya’s responsibilities as a big sister and why they had to devote so much time to the twins. Zuko felt guilt wash over him as he realized that their daughter had taken their words to heart— so much so that she now feared reproach just for asking for help. 

He brought Kya in close for another hug. 

“You’re never, _ever_ a bother to us, Kya. That’s what me and Mama are here for. Even if we’re doing something with the twins, you can always come to us, okay?” 

“Okay,” she whispered. “Papa, are you disappointed with me?” 

“No,” Zuko said fiercely, and he hugged his daughter a little tighter. “You don’t have to worry about that. Now, let’s see your costume so we can get it all fixed up.” 

Kya nodded and picked up the costume, showing him where a seam had popped slightly, an easy fix with a few stitches or a safety pin. 

She tagged along with him as Zuko gathered the sewing supplies and sat back down to mend her costume. He wasn’t as good as Katara was, but he figured that he could get away with his rudimentary skills. After all, it would only be worn for a few hours. 

Kya sat beside him quietly, watching him intently, until he was done. She had chosen to go as Avatar Kyoshi this year— the influence of her older cousin Aeri, who was obsessed with Kyoshi. 

“There, all finished,” he said, smiling. “Let’s put it on, and then I can help you with your makeup, would you like that?” 

Kya’s eyes sparkled and she nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, please!” 

One costume transformation later, a tiny Avatar Kyoshi stood in front of Zuko, bouncing on her heels with excitement, tears all but forgotten. 

“Papa, can we facetime Aeri so I can show her my costume?” Kya asked eagerly.

Zuko nodded and went to grab his phone. “Let me call your Uncle Sokka and see if she’s free to talk.” After exchanging pleasantries, Zuko handed the phone over to his daughter, who immediately started posing in front of the camera once she caught sight of her cousin. 

“Aeri, look at me! I’m Avatar Kyoshi! Isn’t my costume so cool?” 

Zuko cringed slightly but cracked a smile at the ecstatic screams of little girl approval that rang out from the phone speaker. 

— 

Later that afternoon, the family made their way out for trick-or-treating, Kya leading the way with her mother in tow, and Zuko following behind with the twins in a stroller. They approached the first house on the block, where a woman in a witch costume waited with a bowl of candy. 

“Trick-or-treat!” Kya called out. 

“Wow, look at you! Who do we have here?” The woman asked.

“I’m Kya— I mean, Avatar Kyoshi!” Kya answered brightly. She pointed to the twins, who were both dozing in the stroller. “That’s my baby brother and sister, they’re turtleducks,” she explained.

“Avatar Kyoshi, huh? Your siblings sure are lucky to have such a cool big sister,” the woman said, winking, as she dropped a few candy bars into Kya’s treat bag. 

“Thank you!” Kya said, turning to look up at her parents, beaming. “Mama, Papa, did you hear that? The witch said I’m a cool big sister!” 

Zuko and Katara shared a secret smile between them, before Katara took Kya’s hand again. “Let’s go then, Miss Cool-Big-Sister. You’ve got to trick-or-treat for three people today! Think you can handle it?” she asked. 

“Of course! C’mon!” Kya said, tugging her mother’s hand as they headed to the next house.

**Author's Note:**

> an AU where there's an avatar and they also celebrate halloween? yup  
> will i be offering any justification or explanation for this? nope  
> did i just want an excuse to write parent!zutara halloween fluff? yes <3
> 
> as always, any critiques, comments, corrections etc. are welcome!


End file.
